Hawk Off the Press

Bottom line: Iowa won. Three other Big Ten West teams that entered Saturday tied for first didn’t. So the Hawkeyes’ unconventional 10-7 win over Northwestern — a style of victory that is actually becoming conventional for Iowa — puts them alone in first in the West. We break down the game and the scene at Wrigley Field on The Final Score podcast.

It’s a mailbag edition of the Hawk Off The Press podcast, with most of the questions naturally centering on Iowa’s announcement earlier this week that offensive coordinator Brian Ferentz will not return next season.

Invalid fair catch? We discuss the call that wiped out Iowa’s would-be go-ahead touchdown in Saturday’s 12-10 loss to Minnesota and the brutal offense that put the Hawkeyes in a position to need that score on The Final Score podcast.

The play-by-play voice for Saturday’s Minnesota-Iowa football game is uniquely qualified to understand what Iowa quarterback Deacon Hill might be going through as he struggles. Former Iowa QB Paul Burmeister shares that perspective while previewing Saturday’s game on this week’s Hawk Off The Press podcast.

Iowa is in the driver’s seat in the Big Ten West, thanks to its defense, special teams (Tory Taylor, in particular) and a Leshon Williams 82-yard touchdown run. We discuss our takeaways from the Hawkeyes’ 15-6 win over Wisconsin on The Final Score podcast.

It’s another Big Ten West battle Saturday as Iowa travels to face Wisconsin. But what should the Hawkeyes expect from a Badgers team now coached by Luke Fickell? Jake Kocorowski of the Wisconsin State Journal joins this episode of the Hawk Off The Press podcast to provide the scouting report and break down the matchup.